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While Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘friend’, the US President-elect Donald J Trump, is set to move into White House, once again, it need not be particularly beneficial for India. If anything, Trump can be said to be “anti-India” even while remaining “pro-Modi”. The camaraderie contrasts starkly with the president-elect’s anti-India economic stance, which has already manifested in threats of retaliatory tariffs and a staunch defence of the US dollar as the global currency.

History of the Communist Party of India in the last 100 years is a glorious saga of struggles and sacrifices for our country and its people. History of our freedom movement and our progress after independence are incomplete without the blood and sweat of communists all over the country. The foundation day of the CPI, 26th December 1925 is etched in the history of India as the day when dedicated communists from all over the country gathered in Kanpur to form the Communist Party of India and the event changed the course of our freedom struggle.

India’s only decent job creation flagship programme announced in the Union Budget 2024-25 has gone out of track. Though supposed to be launched on August 1, it is now likely to be launched in January 2025, since details of the programmes are not yet ready. One of the reasons for the inordinate delay is, the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment has told the Department related Parliamentary Committee, was pendency of Union Cabinet’s approval.

The aim of all fascistic governments is to disempower the people and the Modi government is no exception. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), which promised one member in every rural household a maximum of 100 days of employment per year, was a demand-driven scheme. In a limited sense, therefore, it gave people a right to employment, not to everyone and not for as many days as a person wanted, but a right nonetheless.

The situation has gone out of hand. The tiger nurtured by the RSS has tasted blood. And RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat giving the impression he can goad the monster is nothing but a blinkered attempt to fool the people. The RSS claim that it's a cultural and social organisation is a bluff. Since its birth in 1925, the RSS has had a well-defined and mischievous political agenda: Divide society and outrage societal ethics and norms.

Will the 16th Finance Commission, which has begun its exercise, be more sympathetic to India’s tribal areas than its predecessor? Will the commission, mandated by the Constitution and whose recommendations hold good for five years, devise ways to alleviate the chronic fund crunch of these autonomous institutions? Will it find solutions to functional hitches which invariably arise between the state government and the autonomous institutions, where election results do not facilitate ‘double engine’ governance?

Consecutive monthly decline in GDP marking the first back to back contraction since the Covid-19 lockdown are signals to UK economy policymakers to clear the decks for a precarious balancing act. This is necessary to stabilise short-term economic performance while fostering long-term growth.

On December 8, 2024, the European Union (EU) implemented the revised product liability directive (Directive (EU) 2024/2853). This brings in a significant change in product liability rules. This update expands on the concepts outlined by the 1985 guideline. Nonetheless, it amends them to handle the difficulties of developing technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), software and the Internet of Things (IoT).

The Union Ministry of Agriculture recently circulated a new draft for a policy framework concerning agricultural marketing. Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, additional secretary in the ministry, proposed the draft to revamp the existing framework. According to the government, the proposed universal tax on agricultural produce will increase farmers’ incomes. The committee has suggested replacing the state-supported market yards, laws on bulk storage, and regulations governing direct purchases by large private entities with a new framework for agricultural marketing mechanisms. A committee comprising state agricultural ministers, similar to the empowered GST committee, will be established to facilitate the direct collection of taxes from the Union government.

Things in the course of development of Artificial Intelligence have come to such a pass that the General Secretary of the United Nations António Guterres had to warn the world about the impending danger to the entire humanity. And any delay in putting in place international guardrails could heighten the risks to global peace and security.